So it is reported that Seattle has cut wide receiver T.J. Houshmandzadeh. Now, I know that he may have not worked out in Seattle and Cincinnati traded him away, but I think he is still a really good receiver.  I really like our current receiving corps and that would mean that either Marlon Moore and/or Roberto Wallace would not be active. But seriously having Marshall and Houshmandzadeh would be a fantastic. I don't think Miami would have to pay much to get him either. Not going to say much more about it, just wanted to see what other Finatics thought about it.

So this yo-yo of a season has finally come to an end. I am not sure if I'm happy or sad. Maybe angry and disappointed are better to describe right now. 

But that's not what I'm here to discuss.

I think it's major change time for the Heat. There are a couple of key things that the address in the off season.

The first is head coach. I know that this may come as a shock to a lot of people. Spolstra is a good coach, especially since he is so raw. I believe he will be better as the years go on, he had a good mentor in Riley. But he can only take the Heat so far. We need someone who can adjust the game plan a little better, and be a little more creative. Although Spolstra was the coach, I think that D-Wade had a large influence.

As far as play calls, Spolstra was really lacking. Every time the Heat came out in a time out the play seemed shaky at best. Half the time it seemed as if it was give Wade the ball and see what he does. I know its not really fare to judge him or the teammates for having Wade on the team, but he needs to instill that killer instinct in the rest of the players. When Beasley was in the game without Wade, the offense needed to flow through him, but that rarely happened. The Heat need someone who knows how to utilize the different players and their skill sets.

Now on to the players. Here is my scratch/keep list:

Dwyane Wade - no brainer

Udonis Haslem - Keep, but willing to trade

Quentin Richardson - Keep, but needs to become more consistent on both ends of the floor

Michael Beasley - this one is a head scratcher. On one hand I'm waiting for this so called potential to shine through. On the other it's almost a Ginn (former Dolphins "receiver"), something that will just never happen. I mean his mistakes are really dumb fundamentally and he seems to disappear in games. I would definitely use him as trade bait, could get someone is a better quick release shooter. Also if they get another scorer, Beasley will be the third option which will really hurt him. He needs the ball a lot and to be the go-to guy to be good, so another team will suite him better.

Chalmers/Arroyo - combined these because together they make a decent point guard. Neither are starters, but could be good off the bench and I kind of liked the way they were both in the game at times. Chalmers showed great pride and skill in the final game, my question is where was that during the season. Arroyo is a good backup, could give second team solidity.

Jones, Diawara - useless, get rid of

Joel Anthony - good player, despite his lack of offensive ability. Really reminds my of lesser Mourning. Great defensively and always active. They need to run more plays for him.

Jermaine Oneal - Just let go. Very inconsistent, old and broken. I was a Oneal fan when he was young, despite him always killing the Heat as a Pacer. But he just doesn't have it anymore and is absence really hurt the Heat.

Dorrell Wright - keep him and give him more playing time. He needs to be more confident, but I believe he can be a solid scorer.

I think I hit most of everyone. (These were not in any particular order). Now on to team needs.

I know that everyone wants Bosh for Miami and the most likely player to come and if he does I would definitely be happy. On the other side of that I'm not a 100 percent on having him in Miami. He is a good fit and a very solid scorer, but I think that we need a big man. Stoudemire is a better fit. The Heat need a center more than anything. We could live with Beasley, Haslem on PF spots, Wright, Richardson should be better at the SF. I think that they are done with Oneal leaving a hole there, a hole that Stoudemire could fill. If we get Bosh, do they force him to play at that spot, do they stick with Oneal or let another sub par player start there. They need a solid to All-star center to compete for a championship and I think that Stoudemire is the answer. Now the question is, can they get him?!

Heat must have an upgrade at point guard. I know that it's been said, but its bad. They need a leader, defender and scorer. That player doesn't need to be great at all these just good. Heat PG's were constantly beaten by other PG's to the bucket opening up lanes for other players. The Heat need someone to take charge of a game and take that off Wade a little. Yes, Wade is always going to be the teams leader, but on the court the PG runs the show. Look at Kidd and Nowintski, obviously Nowintski is the better player, but Kidd runs the team and the plays.

This may be rambling of a fan or some insightful information, take it like you want, but I just hope the Heat make some drastic improvements or we are looking at the same team again.

I will start by saying that Miami played a hell of a game against a Tom Brady team that looks poised to make another deep run in the playoffs. Next I will tackle a few different areas of the game.

The Pass Rush

I mention this one first because there was none. Tom Brady had all day in the pocket and it showed as he dissected the Fins throughout the game. He targeted seven different receivers and 5 of them had multiple catches. I know what you are thinking, that's it's the secondary's fault. That is not true, although they do share half the blame, I give a lot to the lack of pass rush. My question is, where is Joey Porter? He has been invisible this season and even more so today. He didn't even have a tackle today. He said he hates the Pats, but didn't show his intensity on the field today. Porter is done. JT was almost on non-factor on the other side. He hit Brady once and had a tackle, but other than that was quiet. Meanwhile our line was getting dominated. Moreny was getting 5-yard pops and the linemen where leading that charge by pushing the Fins line back.

The Secondary

332 yards, 1 td and 1 int. Honestly despite allowing more than 300 yards through the air, I believe that they played well. Tom Brady is going to get his and when he's allowed to sit in the pocket he will kill you. There is only so much coverage a secondary can provide before the quarterback and his receivers, who by the way are well in tune, break you down. The lack of pass rush did not help the secondary. Randy Moss simply played a great game. The one handed grab then the catch and stiff arm later were, well, Randy Moss. I did like the way Vontea Davis was aggressive and had a couple of defended passes for incompletions, and interception and key tackle on a screen play late in the game. He did get stiff-armed for the long touchdown, but my question is where was the safety help? You simply can't leave Moss one-on-one. Play after play they allowed the Pats to move the ball, but with a better pass rush and a little more experience this unit will be alright.

On a side note, I did not see anyone completely open in the secondary as they were earlier in the season. They are retuning and refining. But I think this unit could be solid next season, that is if we have a pass rush.

The Offense

I know that the numbers don't show this, but Henne played a hell of a game. This guy is making the right reads and the right throws. People will look at the numbers and say that Henne played a sub-par game, but I don't believe that. First off dropped passes killed the Fins again. This time it wasn't just Ginn, although he had a key drop on the fourth down. Every player had a dropped ball that could have kept a drive alive. Henne threw very good catchable passes. The most impressive was the third down conversion late in the game to Bess. He rifled it so hard that it went through the defender.

Then there is the running game, or the lack of one. I know that the stats sheets show that the Fins outrushed the Pats, but its a little misleading. Pat White had 45 yards on 6 rushes. Most of the rushing plays came out of a wildcat/Pat White formation. (side note: when he runs some plays they don't call it the wildcat, but that's what it really is) I already saw some posts that about getting rid of the wildcat, but that's where the rushing yards were achieved. On the conventional formation the team was abysmal. Ronnie and Ricky were getting met at the line and often behind it. I think the team does need to practice more in the base foundations to make the wildcat more of a threat again. The Fins simply have not run well out of regular formations and they need to.

Last comment on offense: FINS NEED RECEIVERS!

Special Teams

Patriots started in good position and the Fins were usually backed up. Enough said. I didn't think that last weeks miracle would suddenly make the special teams dangerous.

Coaching

Something needs to change on playcalling on both sides of the field. Sparano is a great coach and always has the Fins ready to play every week, but I don't think his coordinators are helping him out. The D-coordinator needs to go. No safety help, bad coverage schemes and the blitzes are terrible. Why do they always blitz from the outside? Especially with Brady, you need to move him out of the pocket and make him uncomfortable. JT and Porter are not fast enough to blitz from the outside anymore. Get them in between the gaps and force the line to adjust in the middle, not just push the blitzers around the outside giving the quarterback time.

Although introducing the wildcat, has kept this team alive, I don't like a lot of the playcalling. Henne makes a first down and they take him out for the wildcat. I understand that they want to make the defense think, but let Henne get in a role. I believe if you let him get on a role, he will have a much better game. I think they need to do a better job when they choose to run the wildcat. Then there is that screen pass that always goes to Bess and always gets snuffed out. Hey Coach, I think it's time for a new play! They threw a screen pass to Brown that yielded better results. I think that the Fins have become predictable on offense, because the other teams seem to know what the play is before the offense can even execute.

The Positives

- The Fins were in the game till the end against an explosive offense.

- Despite multiple drives to the redzone, only gave up two TDs

- Vontea Davis looked good despite Moss getting the better of the exchange. But that's years of experience vs. a rookie. Davis will be alright.

- Despite not having any go-to-player and dropped passes, Henne continues to look good. 19 of 34, 219 yards, 0 tds, 0 int (more than a handful of dropped passes).

No Playoffs this year, but a promising future. I will still watch and root every week. Go FINS!

I will be the first to admit that I wanted to get rid of Ginn, but he has saved his spot on the roster for one more week in my book. Don't get me wrong, I'm not going to run out and by a Ginn jersey and say that's he was sent down to save our team (even though he did today). I will give him his due respect for the amazing returns in a hostile environment. He showed a lot of poise to come out and play despite his current downgrade.

Maybe something good came of this. I believe that we should keep in back there returning kicks, while taking limited snaps on offense. Some players are just good returners and not good receivers. Look at Dante Hall, special teams monster, but almost invisible on the offensive end. This is not what we need or what was envisioned when Miami drafted him, but hey a square is a square and you shouldn't try to make it into a circle.

Now that he has shown that he can be explosive and an x-factor, he needs to consistent on special teams. Before breaking those 2 returns, he looked terrible. He looked tentative and was tackled TWICE by the kicker. The only tackle that a kicker should be making is one on the sideline and that should be just a dive. Ginn needs to find a hole and hit it hard and fast. The first return was good blocking, the second was his elusiveness. We need him to produce more with elusiveness and speed.

Other than that, good job Ginn. Keep it up and you might winn back some fans! (and yes I spelled winn like that on purpose).

GO FINS!!

Let's start off on the right foot and say that was a great win last night. I wouldn't say great game because it was a roller coaster of emotions and my heart can't take all that (Just Kidding), but I would have much rather beat them by more.

Anyway on the the real focus of this post; the crappy job by the refs.

I know that people are going to say that they are human and make mistakes and that we shouldn't let them affect the game. But I say shit on that! They get paid to do a job and I expect them to do it correctly and their calls greatly affect the game!

So barring one game, the Dolpins secondary has been eaten alive so they don't help themselves out on a game to game basis, but neither do the calls they are getting. Last night was a prime example. There were multiple Jets drives that were extended because of very questionable calls. First off it's a confidence booster to make an offense go three and out especially for a defense that is struggling. Then you have a ref make a call like "illegal contact" that extends that drive.

Later in the game Wilson was called for a personal foul on a bang-bang play. The receiver runs a route, misses the ball and almost a split second later gets nailed. The hit seemed hard, but it was a safety coming over from the middle to make a play. They said he lead with the helmet and that was clearly a lie. Yes, his helmet was the one of the first thing to hit, but he was flying in from the other side. What would have been a 4th and 10 now extended because of a terrible call.

Then there is the pass interference call on Will Allen. Probably one of the worst calls I have seen this season so far. He barely runs his hand on the receivers waist then he was a step behind, Edwards drops what should have been a reception and they call pass interference. Really?! Where in that play was there any pass interference? Really, I am confused. Is there no accountability for terrible calls like that.

Another play the refs failed to make was the no sack on Sanchez. So they are making a special emphasis on protecting the quarterback and calling everything under the sun "roughing the passer". Ok, that's fine. If that is what the game has evolved to, then I accept that. But on the other hand the lineman had him in his grasp and they don't blow the whistle. I bet if the lineman tried to hit him again or take him down they would have thrown a flag. It is a double standard. Then they turn around and call intentional grounding when it clearly wasn't just to save face. If that's not performing terrible at your job I don't know what is.

There is not a person or team in this world that is not affected by these type of calls. Teams try to play their games, but I'm sorry the horrible truth is that refs change the game with their calls or lack of calls.

Like I said earlier, there needs to be accountability. If I screw up at my job someone would be riding me and corrections would be made. It seems as if there are no corrections made. They say that there is a system in which they are rated and that determines who gets the better games. That's not what I want. So now the good teams get good refs and the crap ones are sent to officiate the other teams. What kind of crap system is that? 

Oh they also don't get to ref in playoff games. Really?! Wow! So what if that regular season call screws a team out of a needed game and the team doesn't make the playoffs! Terrible system and terrible inconsistency. The refs simply need to step up their game!

Replays

I also think that they should allow replays for big calls like the PI's. You can challenge a incompletion or a TD, you should definitely be allowed to replay a PI. They already question the refs decisions on those plays, so why not with PI. Give the Defenses a chance as well. (Oh that's right they rather see big score games, not defensive battles)

So besides the Fins getting a very one-sided victory, who else is excited about the J-E-T-S losing!

First I'll talk about the Fins of course.

The R&R Express dominate the game and the the team rushes for a 250 yards. Henne as I predicted was very solid and will turn into a good player. Henne made the plays that he needed to and didn't turn the ball over (despite coming real close in the fumble). There were a couple of opportunities where he had receivers deep and missed them. But there were couple of things that I took away from that. For one he didn't under-throw the receivers giving a the D a chance to pick it off. The passes looked good, the only thing missing was a little touch. Finally with a little more experience and practice with the receivers those passes will connect.

The defense actually showed up this game. Three picks, one of which returned for a TD. We had pass rush with Cameron and JT. This actually looked like the defense I predicted we would have. They still did allow some big plays which still bothers me, but if they keep playing this solid and keep getting better I think they can get back to the shape they were last season.

Now on to the hated Jets.

It is so good to see them lose. Rex Ryan and his big mouth are shut up for one week. Even better Sanchez was responsible for 4 turnovers. A team finally exposed him for the flake that he is. He has been riding on the coattails of the defense despite having so many turnovers. Everyone has turned the other cheek just because the team has one. Now that the D couldn't stop the other team and they had to depend on him, Sanchez showed his true colors (it just to bad that his team already wears green).

Now we are set up for a very important game next Monday night.

Dolphins win + Jets loss = great weekend.

Dolphins win over Jets (Monday night)= jubilation!

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The Chad Henne era is here whether you like it or not.

I want to begin by saying thank you to Chad Pennington for a great season and his injury is really unfortunate. But this may be a blessing in disguise, even if Henne is a bust. Honestly Pennington is a great quarterback, but he has his limitations and that it hurt the team. His accuracy and decisive play-making was limited because he could not stretch the field. I don't fault him for that, it's just something that he cannot do, just like I cannot dunk a basketball. It hurt the team because if anyone noticed the short routes that were there a season ago were no longer there. The defenses simply took them away because they knew that Pennington could not consistently if at all kill them deep.

Do you want to know why Fasano has been a ghost? Why all of a sudden it takes so long to find a short route?

It's because the D-coordinators have effectively taken them away. In Pennington's first interception of the season the linebacker knew exactly where Pennington wanted to go. Of course it didn't help that Pennington stared down Fasano, but they knew that he wanted to go to his safety valve, to one of the players that hurt teams in short yards last season. Like I said Pennington had his limitations and the defense used that to their advantage.

Like I said Pennington is a good quarterback and probably the best since Marino left, but his injury gives us a somewhat insightful opportunity.

Enter Henne.

I will be the first to say that I was less than impressed with Henne during the last couple of preseasons. With that said it was preseason. It is hard to judge too much from preseason. I mean look at Merling, he looked like crap in the preseason, but played like a stud. I didn't expect Henne to come out and look like a starter, some teams need it some don't and at the time the Dolphins didn't so his reps reflected that. Henne did not get reps with the first team offense to often, but when he did I believe he looked good. I agree that he looked like Trent Edwards at times, but there were times where I really thought he could be the future.

Here is my impression of Henne;

He has a strong arm and he showed that when he entered the game against San Diego. He had zip on passes, a zip that Pennington lacked. The pass to Brown on the sideline was very good. A little long and little outside, but a very catch-able ball (obviously). The pass gets there in a hurry, probably giving the receiver more time to do something. Sorry, but that's just something that I didn't see from Pennington. Very accurate passes but they took so long to get there.

We have yet to see a long ball in the middle of the field, but if that pass to Brown is any indication of how he will throw then I don't think he will have a problem there.

Mental fortitude. What do I mean by this? How would you feel if you had to come into a game after losing your starting quarterback to and injury. I know that he gets paid to for that, but you still have to have a strong mind to not be rattled by that type of situation. Especially if you don't get much practice with the first team offense. I saw no signs of fear or despair in Henne's face. He actually seemed calm and poised. He stood in the pocket and made good passes.

Don't worry, I didn't forget about the interception. Critics say that the game was in hand until he threw that pick. It didn't help the cause, but I don't blame Henne for the loss. You can blame the porous defense for that. Yes it was a stupid pass and I knew it was a pick six before he threw the ball. Henne knew it as well. It was a mistake by a fairly "green" quarterback. He was bated into that throw and I take my hat off to the Chargers for that. The Dolphins were down 16-6 to that point with an offense that has trouble moving the ball fast enough to score and have enough time for another drive. Ginn didn't help his quarterback in the previous drive by dropping two very catchable passes.

But back to that mental fortitude. Henne showed me something in that next drive. Despite making a bonehead play in the previous drive he came back out and put together a touchdown drive. Henne finished the game 10-19 for 92 yards. Ginn dropped two of those incompletions and of course one was the pick.

Despite his limited snaps with the first team offense and game experience, I think that Henne seemed respectable.

I am not on or off the Henne bandwagon, but like I said I think that the team is presented with an opportunity for the future. If Henne proves to be the quarterback that the Dolphins need, then this will provide him with an excellent opportunity to receive much needed game experience for next season. Let' s face it, unless the Dolphins do something drastic on defense and/or go on a winning tear (which is almost impossible with the schedule), the playoffs are a pipe dream.

On the other cleat, if Henne is a bust then now is the time to know. I'd rather know when we are already having a bad season, so that at least this one and the next are not a waste.

This can be the start of something good or another "Ginn-ism", I mean bust.

The once so proud Dolphin Defense is now laughable. A defense that used to keep the team in the game is now a defense that is a liability.

There are two big problems that the team must address; the secondary cannot stop anyone and the blitz packages don't work.

I will start with the secondary, simply because they are terrible! Yes, they have faced very good quarterbacks in their first three games and I never expected them to shut down the passing game. What disturbs me the most is that receivers and tight ends are wide open. Yes, the line is not getting pressure on the quarterback, bu the receivers are WIDE OPEN! Against the Colts if the secondary could have made any stops it would have been a different game. Same goes for the San Diego game.

Miami simply cannot cover tight ends; The linebackers cannot keep up and the secondary cannot tackle them. Receivers run routes and the corners seem to be two steps behind. There is no fear for a quarterback to throw the ball without the consequence of and interception.

Now to the blitz and I mention this second because its part of the reason the that receivers are open.

How many times in this "very young" season have we seen the Dolphins blitz only to have the other team pick it up and kill them on a pass play. The blitz is not getting there and the cost is open players. For example, today they had the Chargers in a third and 8 situation and they blitz the corner to no avail and Gates was wide open for about a 10 yard gain.The blitz is supposed strike fear in the quarterback, it's supposed to make the quarterback rush the throw and the team is supposed to at least hit the quarterback. The Miami blitz does non of the above. 

Don't get me wrong, the blitz has had some success. But every dog gets a bone. Unfortunately that bone is to far and fair in between.

The only bright spot in the defense is the line and their ability to stop the run game. And yes, I credit that to the line. The linebackers have been making stops, but the line has been filling those gaps and manhandling the tackles.

The Dolphins need to make some adjustments on defense or it's going to be a long season of getting gashed.

Here are some stats that should catch your eye:

Matt Ryan: 229 yds 6.4 avg 2tds

Peyton Manning: 303 yds 13.2 avg 2 tds

Philip Rivers: 303 yds 9.2 avg

They still have to face Brady twice, Brees, Shaub (who has killed them in the past) and Sanchez, who despite being a rookie is playing very well.

My final verdict is out on Ginn.

I seriously thought that Ted Ginn was going to have a good season and develop into a star caliber athlete. Just like when the Dolphins drafted him I was fooled. He had multiple opportunities to help a team that desperately needs a playmaker. In primetime against a very questionable Colts secondary, Ginn was unable to make the plays that counted. Yes, he had over a hundred yards in that game, but nothing after the catch and dropped passes when it really counted.

Today Ginn did not have a single catch despite being thrown to six times! Two of those drops were very catchable balls.The Charges didn't even have to try to keep in out of the game plan, he did it to himself.

I know what people are thinking and saying, Pennington doesn't have a strong enough arm to throw to Ginn. I think that has been proven wrong. Pennington has not under-thrown the ball to Ginn if anything he has overthrown him. The ball in the end zone against the Colts right on the money. The one he overthrew previously in that game was catchable. Against the Chargers he was invisible.

Whatever happened to Ginn returning kicks or punts? Isn't that the reason they drafted him? Isn't Ginn supposed to be that fast player that's supposed to make teams fear him?

I will be honest, I was very upset when the Dolphins drafted Ginn, but I bought into the hype. I should have stayed true to my original emotions.

Simply put Ginn is a bust, lets move on!

Let me start off by saying that we looked terrible on offense on Sunday! The D on the other hand was really good considering all the weapons the Falcons have on offense.  Fans are upset that Gonzalez dominated, well he will do that no matter the situation. When he was in KC and their primary option he was still unstoppable. I think the defense did a decent job on him.

But on to the offense.

Before the start of the season, I half expected our passing game to look less than mediocre. Honestly they cannot stretch the field and everything is going to be short passes and dump-offs. If the D-coordinators are any good they will just take the short field away, thus taking away the passing game. This was not what upset me. What really disturbed me was the lack of running room. This is the second year where the line is not getting a push or any running lanes. There is something obviously wrong with that. There is so much talk about Parcells trying to make Miami a smash-mouth team, but the team the O-line has yet to show that.

But this is not about how bad we looked, instead I want to mention how good everyone else in our division looked.

Let me just put these numbers out there:

Brady 39/53 378 yds 2tds, 1 int, 97.8 rating, total team rushing73

Edwards 15/25 212yds, 2tds, 114.1 rating, total team rushing 90

Sanchez 18/31 272yds, 1td, 1int, 84.3 rating, total team rushing 190

Our division rivals looked better than expected. Buffalo took the Patriots to the brink and the only reason they lost was because of a bonehead play on the return. Brady and the Patriots looked a little shaky, but as we know will most likely win the division. Buffalo on the other hand looked pretty decent in my opinion. Their hurry up offense worked and Trent Edwards calling the plays seemed to work well. He seemed to be poised in the pocket and made smart decisions. On D they got in Brady's face and held the team to 73 rushing yards. I'm not saying they're a good team, but they have plenty of upside and that could mean tougher games for Miami.

Meanwhile the Jets went to Houston and looked like a team. The defense was outstanding and held that Houston in check who have some pretty good offense weapons in Johnson and Slaton. Sanchez made one mistake but other than that looked solid in his opening performance. Granted they placed a Houston defense that's not that good, but he had some good throws and they ran the ball really well.

I think the Fins are in for a tough season.